Abnormal liver findings as the first manifestation in a  patient with brucellosis

SummaryIn January 2019, a  30-year-old woman admitted to our inpatient department presented with undulating fever, pain in several joints, and significantly elevated liver enzymes and lactate dehydrogenase. After extended examination, infection withBrucella melitensis with liver, musculoskeletal, and pulmonary involvement was diagnosed and treated. Diagnosis was based on clinical examination, laboratory findings including seroconversion as a  proof of immune response, magnetic resonance imaging, three-phase bone scintigraphy, and F‑18 FDG-PET (F-18 Flourdeoxyglucose positron emission tomography) illustrating the bone involvement and its normalization upon treatment. After treatment the patient showed a remarkable improvement of clin ical symptoms within a short period. The patient remained symptom free and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing for brucellosis was negative, even at the follow-up examination 12 months after the end of the antibiotic therapy. The family members were also examined due to the similar travel hist ory, and by this, brucellosis was also diagnosed in her husband but not in her children.
Source: Wiener Medizinische Wochenschrift - Category: General Medicine Source Type: research